Vilmorins Rowan Trees

• Variety: Vilmorin's Rowan, the small Rowan with berries that fade from crimson to white
• Latin name: Sorbus vilmorinii
• Sold as: Bareroot standard (6/8 and 8/10cm girth), half-standard and 200/250cm tree. Pot-grown in 10 and 12 litre pots
• Mature size: 2.5 to 4m tall and wide. To 5m in time
• Roots: Grown on its own roots, not grafted
• Foliage: Fern-like leaves of many small leaflets, turning purple in autumn
• Flowers and berries: Creamy-white flowers, then crimson berries that fade to near white
• Best soil and site: Moist but well-drained soil. May be short-lived on shallow chalk. Sun or partial shade
• Hardiness: H6, hardy through the British winter
• RHS Award of Garden Merit: Yes (1993)
• Delivered: Bareroot, November to April. Pot-grown, all year when in stock. Collection from Castle Cary also available

Vilmorin's Rowan is the smallest tree among our Rowans: a spreading tree of 2.5 to 4 metres with fern-like leaves that turn purple in autumn, and crimson berries that fade to near white. It holds the RHS Award of Garden Merit, and you can buy it bareroot or pot-grown.

Vilmorins Rowan Trees

'Vilmorins Rowan' sorbus vilmorinii is a small, spreading Chinese rowan tree with bags of ornamental value: one of the most delicate and graceful Rowans. The foliage consists of long fronds of opposing leaflets that spread out as though they're investigating their surroundings, twitching in the lightest breeze and resembling ferns from a distance.
In spring, large clusters of white flowers rise up from the base of the leaves. These are smaller than other types of Rowan, but they more than make up for it by appearing in such dense numbers that they seem to froth out of the tree. When autumn comes, the leaves go out in a jumble of rich, deep reds and purples that help show off the bold colours of the plentiful berries, which slowly change colour from maroon to rosy white, passing through shell pink on the way.

They can be kept as a tree or allowed to become more of a large shrub to about 4 metres, and 5 at most.

Browse all of our other varieties of Rowan / Mountain Ash trees, or our full range of trees.

Delivery season: Rowan trees are delivered bareroot from late autumn to early spring, November to April.
Choosing a size: Small trees are cheaper, easier to handle and more forgiving of less than ideal aftercare, so they're best for a big planting project. If instant impact is your priority, or if you are only buying a few plants for use in a place where it's convenient to water them well in their first year, then you may as well use bigger ones. All our bareroot trees are measured by their height in centimetres above the ground (the roots aren't measured).

Growing Vilmorin Rowans

Any reasonably moist, well drained soil apart from shallow chalk. Suitable for large containers designed for trees. Full sun or partial shade. Tolerant of pollution. Doesn't tolerate drought. Really thrives in high rainfall areas with fairly light soil in colder parts of the UK. Tolerates partial shade, but is most ornamental in full sun.

Without occasional pruning to maintain a single stem, mature plants tend to become multi-stemmed large shrubs if left to their own devices.

History & Trivia

This tree was introduced to Europe in about 1890 by either Abbot Delavay or Father Armand David, two French missionaries who spent long careers in China. They worked at the same time and were prolific plant collectors; it seems that both men were too modest to ensure that they were remembered as the one who discovered this beautiful plant. Either way, it was discovered on the north side of the mountain ranges that mark the border between Kashmir and China, and named after Auguste Louis Maurice Lévêque de Vilmorin (1849-1918), who was president of three agricultural and botanical societies and academies in his career.

Standard trees are measured by their girth in centimetres 1 metre above ground level: their trunk's waist measurement. Unlike sapling trees and hedge plants, standards aren't measured by their height, which will vary quite a bit both between and within species.
So, a 6/8cm standard tree has a trunk with a circumference of 6-8cm and an 8/10 standard has a trunk 8-10cm around. This measurement makes no difference to the tree's final height.
On average, standard trees are 2-3.5 metres tall when they arrive, but we cannot tell you precisely how tall your trees will be before we deliver them.

Planting Companions

Pair Vilmorin's pink-white berries with the white ones of Chinese Mountain Ash. For a small garden, Sheerwater Seedling and Cardinal Royal make up a small-garden trio with it, in three berry colours. See all our small garden trees. Dust bareroot roots with Rootgrow as you plant.

Why Ashridge?

Ashridge has sold trees since 1949 and is a Which? Best Plant Supplier 2025. Your Vilmorin's Rowan comes bareroot, lifted while dormant, or pot-grown for planting in any month. Bareroot trees are guaranteed for 12 months, and so is a potted tree delivered leafless between November and March.

Frequently Asked Questions

How big does Vilmorin's Rowan grow?

It reaches 2.5 to 4 metres tall and as much across, and up to 5 metres in time. It is the smallest tree among our Rowans, so it suits a small garden.

Can you grow it in a pot?

For a few years, yes, if you buy one of the pot-grown sizes and move it into a large container. After that it belongs in the ground. Our other Rowans are not trees for pots.

Will it grow on chalk?

Not happily on thin soil over chalk, where it may be short-lived. It does best in moderately fertile soil that stays moist but drains well.

Does it need pruning?

Very little. If you want a tree with a single stem, take off competing stems now and then. Left alone, it tends to become a large shrub with several stems.

Do Rowans sucker from the base?

Ours are grown on their own roots, not grafted, so there is no rootstock to throw suckers. Any shoot from the base is the tree itself.

Is a Rowan the same as a Mountain Ash?

Yes, they are two names for the same trees. Vilmorin's Rowan is a Chinese species, a relation of our native Rowan or Mountain Ash.

When are the trees delivered?

Bareroot trees are delivered from November to April, while they are dormant. Pot-grown trees can be delivered and planted in any month when you find them in stock.